1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a ball-point pen which is small in size and which adheres to a multitude of objects and surfaces.
2. Description of Prior Art
The need for a pen which is convenient to carry on the person and is unlikely to be forgotten so as to be available for casual use is well recognized.
The majority of ball-point pens for everyday use have traditionally included a rigid, round or prismatic body and are commonly approximately six inches in length so as to require retention in the relatively protected environment such as the breast pocket of a shirt or the front/back pocket of trousers. This practice is uncomfortable to the carrier and is susceptible to bending or breaking thereby permanently damaging both the pen and the garment due to leakage of ink.
In addition, when changing their clothing people often forget pens when transferring other essential accessories such as pocketbooks, cellular phones, etc., especially when continuous use of a pen is not required.
A professional Patent search was conducted and revealed inventions that have attempted to solve this common problem. This prior art is as follow:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,568,213 issued to Money in 1986 teaches of a foldable pen with cap that when flat, can be used as a bookmark. When the pen is to be used for writing, it folds into a triangular prism to be grasped by the hand. The conventional size of this pen does not allow for continuous personal carriage of which is comfortable, convenient and conducive to garment protection. Also, the very nature of the triangular design of the pen does not allow for comfortable writing.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,732,504, issued to Telli in 1988 teaches of a flexible flat ball-point pen. In general, flexible pens are not adequate writing utensils due to their lack of rigidity, thereby making them difficult to control. Also, the flexible property causes the pen to fold back onto itself. The flexibility of the pen does not lessen the tendency for an individual to forget the pen when transferring other personal accessories from one pair of trousers to another pair of trousers. In addition, the design and conventional size prevents carriage within a pocketbook or affixed to a cellular phone.
U.S. Pat. No. Des. 302,985 issued to Vinck in 1989, teaches of a card-type pen with cap consisting of a ball-point pen that fits snugly into a credit card receiving pocket of a pocket book, The perimetrical dimensions of this pen mimic that of a typical credit card. The thin rectangular design of this pen makes it quite awkward to write with. Also, the plurality of steps involved in retrieval and usage of this pen make it frustrating and inconvenient to use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,897,261 issued to Goetz in 1999, teaches a ball-point pen with cap with an overall length which is approximately equal to a conventional credit card enabling the pen to fit snugly in a credit card receiving pocket of a pocket book. This pen has a thin flat body containing a writing cartridge. The corners of the body at the writing/front end are angular and the rear corners are rounded. Also, the shape of the body is tapered so that the rear end of the pen is wider than the writing/front end.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,880 issued to Sekiguchi in 1989 teaches of a card type writing instrument. This writing instrument has a plastic casing with recesses that are filled by the writing elements. The dimensions of the casing mimic those of a conventional credit card, thus the writing elements are even smaller than the case, making them very difficult for writing. The retrieval of the case from the pocketbook coupled with the complicated procurement of the writing elements is a time consuming operation, especially in less than favorable lighting situations, social occasions, etc. Also, the hole for which the pen tip is inserted to secure the pen to the plastic casing is open, thus exposing the pocketbook or garment to ink if the pen were to leak.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,897,261 and U.S. Pat. No. Des. 302,985 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,880 are all limited to receiving pockets of pocket books. Also, they require excessive space in an individual""s wallet when only the cartridge portion of the pen is needed for such brief, casual use i.e. phone numbers, internet addresses etc. The design of these pens does not allow for storage on other essential personal accessories such as cellular phones, pocket calculators, cigarette lighters, checkbooks, Palm Pilots, Laptop computers, etc. In addition, the design of these card-style pens requires the use of two hands and numerous operating steps They do not offer easy access and simple operation. Finally, the design of these pens does not have an affixed receiving base which makes them susceptible to non-returned borrowing and general misplacement due to forgetfulness.
Accordingly, there remains a need for a ball-point pen which is adapted for direct storage on a multitude of personal accessories, which is quite handy to carry continuously on one""s person and which is in a compact form available for quick, direct use. Also, the simple construction of the pen allows for manufacture using conventional mass production techniques for high volume production at low cost. My invention possesses all of these characteristics. However, all the pens designed for handy carriage heretofore known suffer from a number of disadvantages:
(a) Their design or size is limited to either pockets or pocketbooks that contain a receiving pocket for conventional size credit cards.
(b) Their operation is time consuming and complicated. It involves several steps: retrieval of the entire unit, two handed removal/replacement of the cap and then replacement of the capped unit back into the receiving pocket of the pocketbook.
(c) Their design is unnecessarily bulky and requires valuable storage space in pockets or pocketbooks.
(d) The whole unit is independent and not affixed. This design increases the likelihood of the pen being misplaced, forgotten or the subject of non-returned borrowing from another individual in need of such a device.
(e) Their design and placement is conducive to breakage and leakage causing damage to personal accessories and damage to the carriers garments.
In accordance with the present invention a miniature pen comprises an elongated writing cartridge that fits snugly into a sheathlike holding element having an adhesive mounting strip.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present invention are:
(a) Extreme versatility: for use on several items such as wallets, cellular telephones, checkbooks, television remote controls, cigarette lighters, laptop computers, handheld computers, personal radios, calculators, text books, car dashboards, sunglasses, golfing equipment, backpacking equipment, makeup cases, key chains, etc.;
(b) quick, convenient, one hand operation;
(c) compact size;
(d) stationary base reduces loss;
(e) garment friendly design.